Best Books of 2016, All in One Place

For some of us, nestling our noses in a good book was the best way to escape the ghastly, noxious brute that was this past year, personified. But curating a cathartic To Be Read (TBR) stack is not always natural or easy, as I wrote about in August. Even those of us who managed to do so–or whose 2016 TBR stacks reached embarrassingly vertical heights–sometimes found ourselves in that lonely place between books, when, instead of spending evenings curled up in literary repose, we listlessly gazed at repeat episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond or paced around the house looking for anything, preferably doused in chocolate, that would assuage our growing malaise.

Or maybe that was just me?

Regardless!–there exists, as always, a light at the end of the tunnel for me and my fellow book-lover-escapists. One of the best parts of each year, and certainly of this year, in particular, are the dozens of “best of” book lists that pop up every few hours in our social media feeds. However, if you are like me, collecting and organizing these lists can be an incredibly overwhelming task, especially for those of us whose tastes range from lively, colorful picture books to dark, edgy YA (and beyond).

In light of this, I’ve created a Padlet that will help us collect these lists for all to enjoy and that will offer a central location where we might go to search for that “next book” to read and/or recommend to a student. As a public Padlet, this is one that everyone and anyone is welcome to add to, simply by clicking on an open space and adding text or a link. What I have created is only a small start, so as you come upon more “best of 2016” lists (or develop your own), please feel free to post them here, and share this resource widely with colleagues, students, and others.

Sincere wishes for a pleasant and reading-abundant end to 2016. Happy, happy New Year!